Hanna Checkers

Douglas Wattier · Oct 17, 2017

What am I missing about the hanna checkers? I just ran out of my red sea reagent and was considering replacing with some hanna checkers. But as I am looking over them, especially the reef kit, I noticed the number of tests that you can run before buying more reagent is quite low.
Alk - 25 tests
Ca - 15 tests
PO4- 6 tests
I'm assuming the PH doesn't need a reagent.
Maybe its because I am still fairly new, test my parameters at least every other day, and I don't know what a good schedule for testing each level is. For those of you who use the checkers, how often are you testing? Or am I missing something about these, am I supposed to buy more reagent to begin with?

Idoc · Oct 17, 2017

They can get a little pricey when buying new reagents. I have the phosphate checker and 25 refills are around $8-10. I've only been testing every few days to a week since early in my setup. It is nice to get an exact number to monitor rather than trying to figure out a color match with a card! I haven't used the other checkers besides phosphate.

jsker · Oct 17, 2017

I was Red Sea all the way, until of late. My test numbers we all over the place from reagent to reagent. I agree with @Idoc it is quick and right every time. The thing I like about the 25 each on Po4, alk, and Ca the reagents are fresher.

cracker · Oct 17, 2017

That's a good point Jsker . I like the ease of my new Hanna alk kit. And no color guessing either ! I can only assume they are accurate. However one can go crazy trying different kits never knowing which is closest . I stick with one kit & that's it !

Douglas Wattier · Oct 17, 2017

So how often are you guys checking your params? I feel like if I grab some hannah checkers and I end up checking every day/every other day, I'm gonna be buying a lot of reagent.

penguin_free · Oct 17, 2017

I recently picked up the Hanna alk, ultra low range phosphorus, and Ca checkers, and all have worked nicely for me. Their Ca checker has had a lot of complaints related to the tiny amount of water sample used (1 ml reagent + 9ml DI water, then add 0.1mL water sample and a reagent packet). But with the upgraded micropipette they went to, I have been getting consistently repeatable results with it. I try to do a set of water tests every 2-3 days, but sometimes it slips to 4 or 5 days.

FugeTown · Oct 17, 2017

The salifert alkalinity test kit has an option to use half the reagents and you get two times more tests I love it , I'm gonna check out their calcium test kit too to see if it's similar.

dealseer · Oct 17, 2017

FugeTown said:
The salifert alkalinity test kit has an option to use half the reagents and you get two times more tests I love it , I'm gonna check out their calcium test kit too to see if it's similar.

I need more accuracy than that.

phillygeeks · Oct 17, 2017

I use the Hanna alk daily to every other day, sometimes every several days or so if alk has been stable and no changes by me . The ease and consistency are what leads me to continuing to use it even though I have to replenish the reagent. I also have the ultra low phos which I check monthly or slightly less. Other than that I have moved to salifer for Mg and still have Red Sea Ca Pro

joaquin706 · Oct 17, 2017

It's okay to test once a day until you become familiar with your tank. Also you begin to know the Alk consumption of the corals. Make a log and hopefully you will see the trend and that will mean you won't need to test so much. Calcium and magnesium you can test on a weekly basis. Same for PO4.
Brs has the reagents for 8 dollars , I recommend buying 2 at time. There will come a time where you will know how much the tank will need .

CindyKz · Oct 17, 2017

I use the Hanna for alk and PO4, I test alk every 2-3 days on my big tank and weekly on my small tank (softies only) so yes, I go through reagent pretty quickly but alk is such a key parameter I think the convenience of being able to check it quickly and easily is worth the money - I don't think I'd test as often if it were a lot of work. I only test PO4 weekly or so, so I don't go through the reagent quite so quickly on that one. Honestly, I picked up the PO4 Hanna used for a good price, or else I wouldn't have bought it.

I use Salifert for everything else. I don't think it's worth the money to get a Hanna for everything - also, I've read user reviews that found the other Hanna checkers to be as or even less accurate than titration/color change tests. If you do a google search you will find them too.

FugeTown · Oct 17, 2017

A

dealseer said:
I need more accuracy than that.

are you trying to say salifert alkalinity test kits are not accurate?

Scurvy · Oct 17, 2017

I test Alk 3 times a week, Calcium/Mag very other week and Nitrate/PO4 on average once a week unless something looks off.

HolisticBear · Oct 17, 2017

penguin_free said:
But with the upgraded micropipette they went to, I have been getting consistently repeatable results with it. I try to do a set of water tests every 2-3 days, but sometimes it slips to 4 or 5 days.

I was under the impression the Ca checker was unreliable, but I didn't know they upgraded how it works. Thanks for sharing!

Scurvy · Oct 17, 2017

MrMichael said:
I was under the impression the Ca checker was unreliable, but I didn't know they upgraded how it works. Thanks for sharing!

Actually the latest Ive been earring is the Hanna calcium checker is giving the closest results to those using Triton testing. The checker typically returns a higher number for calcium than other kits but when compared to triton they’ve been closest to the ICP result.

FugeTown · Oct 17, 2017

dealseer said:
I need more accuracy than that.

Ok folks I just took the time to do a test on distilled water for alkalinity with the Salifert test kit. Distilled water alkalinity should be at 0 and after my test its confirmed my salifert test kit is pretty darn accurate because the result came back zero. Im not sure why some people think it's not accurate but I'm pretty confident it is.

will424 · Oct 17, 2017

I bought 100 PO4 reagents on ebay for 24$ shipped

penguin_free · Oct 18, 2017

MrMichael said:
I was under the impression the Ca checker was unreliable, but I didn't know they upgraded how it works. Thanks for sharing!

The test itself still works the same way; they just included a micropipette that makes it simpler and more repeatable to measure out the 0.1ml sample of aquarium water. Instead of a graduated pipette/dropper, the new 0.1ml micropipette just has a plunger you press all the way down, submerge the tip, release, and then dispense.

Randy Holmes-Farley · Oct 18, 2017

FugeTown said:
A

are you trying to say salifert alkalinity test kits are not accurate?

I think he meant the reduced volume idea to get twice as many tests from the same kit, but at half the precision.

Lousybreed · Oct 18, 2017

cracker said:
That's a good point Jsker . I like the ease of my new Hanna alk kit. And no color guessing either ! I can only assume they are accurate. However one can go crazy trying different kits never knowing which is closest . I stick with one kit & that's it !

Assuming they are accurate is a big mistake.